August 31, 2017

Cinemascope: Chasing Coral

Cinemascope is a regular blog post where I will share with you movies and TV shows I think are worth watching.

Image result for chasing coral poster

Released in 2017.

Plot line: Coral reefs around the world are vanishing at an unprecedented rate. A team of divers, photographers and scientists set out on a thrilling ocean adventure to discover why and to reveal the underwater mystery to the world.

I have zero patience for gobal warming skeptics. This is a clear and present danger, so stop with all the BS and educate yourself on the issues. This documentary had me in tears, and I'd highly recommend it to every human, but especially divers and snorkelers who've spent time among one of the wonders of the natural world.

You can see the trailer here. If you have yet to see it, this is TV worth watching.

August 29, 2017

P!nk's VMA Speech

This is what excellent parenting looks like.



If the embedded video does not work, click here.

Buy a book to help relief efforts in Houston

Got the following email from a reader friend in Houston:

Elizabeth

I am safe here in Houston but my city is devastated by this epic weather event. I know you have a blog and wondered if you could get this information out for me.

Brazos Bookstore in Houston is donating 20% of proceeds from now until Sunday to relief efforts in Houston. Our city needs help. Please visit their website and considering making a purchase.

www.brazosbookstore.com
---------------
Sounds like a wonderful way for readers to contribute to the relief efforts.
Thank you.

August 28, 2017

Vegas 2016 Travel Journal Flip

Finally getting around to a flip of this completed journal.



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August 21, 2017

Recent Reads

87. The Master (The Gameshouse #3)
I listened to the audiobook which is wonderfully narrated by Peter Kenny.

Contrary to what all the movies and ads sell us, we know, deep down we know, that the house always wins. The game being played here is the ultimate one: a game of chess against the Gameshouse itself. Who would dare? Silver, of course. He's had cameo appearances in the first two novellas, and in this final one he takes center stage, and in this case the stage is the entire planet. Can Silver really win against the Woman in White?

Yes, I'll repeat myself with how much I loved the writing, the plot, the setting, the characters, etc. There are so many things that made me smile in recognition, and I flew through this one too. I docked a star because the point of view of the story changed, and I so loved the original format. Also, I had an inkling about the head of the Gameshouse, so was not really surprised. Still, loved that ending. It's a game after all, so why would you expect anything different?

I honestly can't put into words the wondrous experience of this trilogy. I've enjoyed every minute of my time in these worlds, and would highly recommend you give this series a try. Rating: 4 stars.

88. Ruined
The winner of the 2009 Pulitzer Prize for Drama, this play is a difficult yet important read.

I use a cell phone. Maybe you do too. There are so many ethical issues concerning how and where and by whom our gadgets and products are manufactured. Coltan, a mineral mined in the Congo and used in cell phones, is partly the cause of the ongoing war in the region. This play sheds some light on the collateral damage of devices upgraded often, and one we take for granted.

Inspired by interviews the author conducted in Africa with Congo refugees, this it both an engrossing and horrifying read. The setting is a bar/brothel at the edges of the war in Congo, and the diverse cast of characters each illustrate a different perspective on the war. If you are a sentient being you already know that rape is a weapon used by all sides, and this play gives us a glimpse into the lives of Congolese women in this particular war.

It's my opinion that plays are better seen than read, and that was certainly true in this case. For example, there were a couple of women whose name both started with S, and I often had to pause to remind myself which one was talking as I was reading. I'll be on the lookout for a production near me, and would highly recommend this one. Rating: 4 stars.

89. In the Sounds and Seas (In the Sounds and Seas #1–3)
This wordless graphic novel is supposed to be a "poetic investigations in to mythology and the quest for meaning-making," but I simply did not get it.

The story starts with three figures sitting around a fire in the woods, and as they burst into song their individual voices weave around each other to create the world. OK, that I got. The rest? Not so much. I liked the ship/sailing sections, and I enjoyed what I think is the message that art and creation is what it's all about. But honestly, I felt like I needed a cheat sheet to figure out what the point of this was. I really loved the art, the line work is wonderfully detailed, and it would be worth checking this out of your library just to look at the art. However, I for one felt like I had definitely missed a memo that would have made this story understandable. Rating: 2 stars.

August 14, 2017

Recent Reads

84. The Dark Prophecy (The Trials of Apollo #2)
For our family reunion this year my nieces and nephews picked the first two books in this series for our Myrtle Beach book club.

I have essentially the same things to say about this one as I did for the first one, so rather than repeat myself, I'll add that the haikus was a fun touch. Plus Peaches cubed! Rating: 2 stars.

85. The Serpent (The Gameshouse #1)
I listened to the audiobook which is wonderfully narrated by Peter Kenny.

Don't you just love when you stumble onto something unexpected that delights you? That's exactly how I felt when I found The Gameshouse novella trilogy at my library's Hoopla account. I'd never heard of the author, it turns out she's got several pen names, and this series seems to have some passionate followers, so decided to try it. And was immediately hooked.

This first volume is set in 17th century Venice, and we meet a young woman who is married off to a drunk who spends her dowry on drink and gambling. The young women enters the Gameshouse, where fortunes are won and lost over various games, and proves herself worthy an invitation to the exclusive higher league of the house ... "a league where the games played are of politics and empires, of economics and kings. It is a league where Capture the Castle involves real castles, where hide and seek takes place on a scale as big as the British Isles." The game she plays is a one that will determine Venetian politics, but there are others who want the win the game as much as she does, will she prevail?

The language is wonderful, the setting of Venice beautifully described (especially if you have visited it), the characters interesting, and watching the game unfold is thrilling. If you enjoy interesting narrative forms, and are okay with uncertainty as you wait for the yarn to fully unfold, give this one a try. It's a feminist tale with intrigue, mystery, murder, political maneuvering, philosophical musings, and a look at humanity in a wonderful setting. I gobbled it up and downloaded the next in the series immediately upon completion. Rating: 4 stars.

86. The Thief (The Gameshouse #2)
Book blurb: In 1930s Bangkok, one higher league player has just been challenged to a game of hide and seek. The board is all of Thailand - and the seeker may use any means possible to hunt down his quarry - be it police, government, strangers or even spies ....

I listened to the audiobook which is wonderfully narrated by Peter Kenny.

This is the second novella in the Gameshouse trilogy and I loved it even more than the first one. If you have ever visited Thailand you'll get even more of a thrill as you read this installment. We've all played hide and seek as children, but not with stakes or allies like these! We get introduced to some new characters, and run into some old pals too. The writing continues to be wonderful, the characters well developed, the setting beautifully described, and I loved the exploration of philosophy, humanity, greed, gambling, and emotions evoked by games. And that ending! So dang good. As with the previous one, I gobbled it up and downloaded the final one in the trilogy. Rating: 5 stars.

August 12, 2017

Journal pages

I continue to play in my cheap sketchbook. The paper isn't very good, but takes light watercolors okay. These were all done on location with my trusty travel kit. 

Trying to capture some things on the boat.


Outside at the Lowell Folk Festival with a pen and some Crayola colorpencils.


These guys were not this short. Ah well. 

August 10, 2017

Game of Thrones (Season 7)

Cinemascope is a regular blog post where I will share with you movies and TV shows I think are worth watching.

Image result for game of thrones season 7 poster

Released in 2017.

Plot line: George R.R. Martin's best-selling book series "A Song of Ice and Fire" is brought to the screen as HBO sinks its considerable storytelling teeth into the medieval fantasy epic. It's the depiction of two powerful families -- kings and queens, knights and renegades, liars and honest men -- playing a deadly game for control of the Seven Kingdoms of Westeros, and to sit atop the Iron Throne.

Winter is here!  I've been slowly re-watching all the previous seasons in preparation for Season 7, and it's interesting the things I forgot, or confused with sections of the books. I continue to love this show. This season starts off with a bang, and I cannot wait to see what happens next. At this point you are either already on the bandwagon or not. Yes, the show is violent and bloody, but I squint my eyes for a few seconds and move on. Go House Stark!

You can see the trailer here. If you have yet to see it, this is TV worth watching.

August 7, 2017

Recent Reads

81. Waltz With Bashir: A Lebanon War Story
"One night in Beirut in September 1982, while Israeli soldiers secured the area, Christian militia members entered the refugee camps of Sabra and Shatila and began to massacre hundreds, if not thousands, of Palestinians."

We often forget that history is the story of war told by the victors. The massacre that occured in Sabra and Shatila is not one I had even heard about until I was in college and met a classmate called Sabra. In every war and conflict, it is too easy to label one group the good guys and the others bad, but that is not ever the entire story, and this comic explores the history of this event and the amnesia, personal and collective, that surround it. What people knew and did not, what they did and did not. While it's often easy to think we might behave differently in a given circumstance, this book is a reminder that when we are in high stress situations we behave in unexpected ways and often have no memories of the trauma at all.

I really liked the art in this one, and the exploration of how memory and history intertwine. I appreciated learning more about these events, and it's fascinating and horrifying to read about events from a different perspective. I plan to watch the movie, and deducted a star because it felt unfinished in some crucial manner.

It's interesting that this my library labeled this as fiction when it clearly is not. An important book for anyone with strong opinions about the Israeli/Palestinian "conflict". If you tend to only hear one side of that story, give this one a try. Rating: 4 stars.

82. Boundless
Do you admire an author but somehow their books don't resonate with you? Am I the only one with this problem? I follow the author's work, but somehow her books don't work for me. I had high hopes that this would work better for me, but it was not to be. This graphic novel is a collection of short stories, and while I appreciated some of the art and the premise of some of the stories, overall this one left me scratching my head over all the rave reviews. Maybe it's just me. Sigh. Rating: 2 stars.

83. Elizabeth Is Missing
Book blurb: In this darkly riveting debut novel—a sophisticated psychological mystery that is also a heartbreakingly honest meditation on memory, identity, and aging—an elderly woman descending into dementia embarks on a desperate quest to find the best friend she believes has disappeared, and her search for the truth will go back decades and have shattering consequences.

I really cannot say much more about the plot of this book without spoilers.

It's not often that we read about older women in fiction, and I'm loving the trend to change that. Who are we without our memories? Aging is challenging, but it surely is better than the alternate, and yet the losses encountered along the way are heart breaking. There are two mysteries in this story, and while they are interesting that was not the main draw for me. I loved the voice in this novel, and I found myself angry at some people, and saddened by what was happening to Maud as time passed. It's not so much a plot driven story as a character driven one, and it gave me insight into both the aging and their caretakers, and has helped me look at aging family members differently. That this is a debut novel, by one so young at that, is simply astounding, and I plan on reading everything Ms. Healey writes.

I listened to the audiobook which was superbly narrated by Davina Porter, and would highly recommend the book in the audio format. Rating: 5 stars.

August 3, 2017

Cinemascope: Allied

Cinemascope is a regular blog post where I will share with you movies and TV shows I think are worth watching.

Related image

Released in 2016.

Plot line: Max Vatan (Brad Pitt) and Marianne Beauséjour (Marion Cotillard) are World War II operatives who never reveal their true identities. After falling in love during a risky mission, they hope to leave all that double-dealing behind them and start new lives. Instead, suspicion and danger envelop their marriage as both husband and wife become pitted against each other in an escalating, potentially lethal test that has global consequences.

How much can you ever know another person? Wouldn't that be so much harder if you were both spies? This is an interesting look at relationships formed under war time conditions, but with a twist. I'd recommend this one for fans of period war movies, though it isn't about war as much as about the two main characters.

You can see the trailer here. If you have yet to see it, this is a movie worth watching.